Mr. Robot

I decided to check out a few network premieres this week so I wanted to share my thoughts with you. Those of you who follow me regularly know I detest network shows because they’re sanitized claptrap, unlike the brave stuff HBO and other cable networks are doing. There is definitely claptrap but I liked the three shows I watched (so far):

1.Designated Survivor. I’ll watch pretty much anything with Kiefer Sutherland. Even when 24 went off the rails in its later seasons, he kept the show watchable. I was ready to give up on Designated Survivor after the first 40 minutes, but the last few minutes left me wanting more. I’m not sure I’ll stick with this long-term, but it is due to be dvr’ed this week. There’s definitely claptrap potential with this show, so I’ll be closely monitoring. I will say that I can’t stand the actress who plays the first lady. Also, the show is treading dangerously close to “Homeland” territory with the annoying kids. B+

2.Lethal Weapon. Look, the only reason I watched this is because I really like Damon Wayans. I have to say I was pretty impressed, probably due to low expectations. The show itself looks pretty, and the two lead actors have a great rapport. There’s also claptrap potential here, plus the formula of the show may get old quickly. B+

3.Pitch. I would have loved this pilot, if the last 60 seconds were omitted. Claptrap alert, claptrap alert! If this show was on cable, it wouldn’t include a dead dad to keep our attention. There was so much to love about this pilot and it definitely has potential. The lead actress and Mark-Paul Gosselaar are terrific. A-

4.Gomorrah. I think we’re towards the end of the first season being aired in the USA on Sundance. It’s getting really good now. I believe the last segment will air on Wednesday. I then have to look for the second season somewhere. My guess is that Daniele’s brother will team up with Ciro to go after Conte, since he doesn’t know that Ciro was the one responsible for his brother’s death. I think he believes that Gennaro gave the order, and Ciro simply followed the order and had Daniele carry it out. We’ll see.

5.Mr. Robot. I have nothing to say about the season finale except that I have no earthly idea what is going on. I’ll still continue to watch though. Sam Esmail is a genius.

DVR alert: Poldark tonight at 8 on PBS; Shameless back on Showtime 10/2; Class Divide on HBO on 10/3

Although it’s summer, there’s a lot of good tv on right now. You just have to know where to look. Here’s what I’m watching:

1.Gomorrah on Sundance. I’ve been waiting for this gritty Neapolitan crime family drama to come to the US for a while. Thanks Sundance! Season 1 is currently airing two episodes at a time on Wednesday nights. I’ve only seen the first two episodes but I’m already hooked. There are subtitles but you soon forget you’re even reading them because the scenery is so complex – a combination of the beautiful landscapes of Naples and the down and dirty of impoverished neighborhoods and gangsters.

My theory is that Ciro was the informant and the phone number he burned at the end of episode 2 was for his contact at the police. Now that he has to run things while the boss is in prison, and the boss’s son is on life support, he can’t be the informant anymore.

2.Mr. Robot on USA. OK, I’ll admit, I have no earthly idea what all is going on with this show right now. Who is the Dark Army? Why is it not aligned with Darlene and her group? Where is Titus Welliver? Why is his wife being protected by a guy who appears to be police? You know what, I don’t care. The show is a lot of fun, especially the recent episode that started with the 80s theme. It really brought me back to those 80s sitcoms with their simplistic storylines where all problems were happily resolved by the end. TV ain’t like that no more, and boy am I glad (what would we have to write about?).

3.Ray Donovan on Showtime. I won’t say much about Ray Donovan this season as I am bored to tears. Jon Voight is the ONLY reason I’m still watching. I think I’m breaking up with RD after this season. Sorry Liev, just too much emotional and Donovan family crap distracting from the interesting stuff.

4.The Night Of on HBO. This sleeper of a show has finally woken viewers up and now appears to be getting a lot of press. I bet it will do well in DVD, iTunes,etc. sales in future. The season finale is tonight. My prediction is that Naz will be acquitted, he’ll be killed in prison before his release, and the viewer will be shown at the end what really happened, via the surveillance camera inside of the deer head on the victim’s wall.

Personally, I think Naz committed the crime. Not with any pre-meditation or necessarily intent, I think he went apeshit from the drugs and alcohol, and his subconscious broke him out of his good boy, immigrant son mold to do something so uncharacteristic. Just a theory folks, I could be dead wrong. Shout out to Michael K. Williams for another stellar performance. You’ll always be Omar to me.

Hiatus/vacation is officially over. It’s good to be back to reality I guess. I was intent on posting over the break but I needed to unplug. I also intended to do a “best of 2015” list of something or other but those have been done to death so I figured who cares. I’m all about looking ahead, not in the past.

Anyway, lots to discuss today. If you follow me on twitter, I broke up with both The Good Wife and Downton Abbey this week. I don’t do new year’s resolutions, rather, I set goals, and one of my goals for 2016 was to reduce my screen time by focusing only on shows that I really enjoy. Sorry but GW and DA don’t cut it for me anymore. I was one of the original Downton watchers on PBS from the beginning when no one else watched because it was set in “olden times” and there were accents. Then of course everyone jumped on the Downton bandwagon and the show went downhill. I still love the Dowager Countess but not enough to overcome the boring ass tribulations of Bates/Anna, etc.

As for GW, the season started off with a lot of promise, setting up a battle between Eli and Margo Martindale. However, Margo’s talent has been wasted this season and I’m tired of waiting for something to happen.

Psyched for the Golden Globes tomorrow night. I would love it if Game of Thrones won for best show but I have a feeling Mr. Robot will win. Don’t get me wrong I loved Mr. Robot but it’s no GOT. I wouldn’t mind if Narcos won either but Mr. Robot for me was a little too niche to win overall.

I started watching an interesting show on Discovery this week called “The Killing Fields”. It’s a true story following a cold case investigation of an 18 year old murder in Louisiana. It reminds me of “The First 48” without the annoying narrator. I’m intrigued so far and convinced that the owner of the dive bar knows more than he’s saying.

The first episode of American Crime this week was also intriguing. It’s strange to see the actors playing different roles this season but so far I like it. Regina King is always great as is Felicity Huffman. I like this show because it addresses race in an intelligent way and also in ways that don’t sensationalize it (yes I’m talking about you members of the media!).

That’s what’s going on here today. I’m working on my next post about “Making a Murderer”, which I hope to have up soon. I will note that I watched it the weekend it was released, weeks before everyone else jumped on the bandwagon. Am I a trendsetter or what?

One last thing, I finally listened to season one of Serial. I knew in the first 10 minutes of episode one that he did it!

Sorry folks, I’ve been on hiatus for a while enjoying the great outdoors. Remember when summer was a tv wasteland and we had to wait until September for decent television? Certainly not the case anymore. Here’s what I’ve been watching this summer, in no particular order:

1.Mr. Robot – How did I just find out about this show? As I type I am on episode 8. I think the finale is coming up this week. I’ll be honest the lead actor is not my favorite, probably b/c he’s not your typical leading man (um, bug eyes?), but he definitely fits the loner hacker profile. It’s great to see Christian Slater again and the premise of the show is intriguing. I was really rooting for Shayla to survive and get rid of Darlene instead but no such luck. I’m curious to see how the show wraps up the season. There are a lot of dry funny moments such as when Eliott decides to be “normal” and get a girlfriend, join a gym, and go to Starbucks. Question, how did Evil Corp. decide to name itself Evil Corp.? I didn’t catch that part.

2.Poldark – I won’t lie, Ross Poldark with his tricorn hat was the draw for me. I was thrilled when he and Demelza got together. I love PBS for their willingness to put on shows that may not get a ton of eyeballs but I think this one did pretty well.

3.Show me a Hero – I”ve only watched the first segment but so far, so good. It’s very Wire-esque and I’ll watch anything David Simon is involved in (except Treme, which just didn’t do it for me). I have to say the first segment was a bit slow but I get he has to develop all of the characters separately before bringing them together for the big clash. The guy who plays the mayor is phenomenal.

4.Hard Knocks – Not a football fan at all, but I love this show. I played a lot of sports growing up and I think it’s just watching people at the height of athletic competition that’s fun. JJ Watt could be the finest athletic specimen I’ve ever seen. I’d definitely pick the Texans defense if I was in a fantasy football league.

5.Ballers – Look at that another football show. This was my favorite of the summer. The Rock is such a likable guy and certainly easy on the eyes. I’ve liked his sidekick in a lot of other stuff I’ve seen him in, and I thought they made a great team comedically. It was the perfect summer show – not too heavy, beautiful scenery and cars, and the one show that actually had good things happen to the characters. I especially enjoyed the episode where Spencer made amends with the player he injured and had him throw out the first pitch. So glad it will be back for another season!

6.True Detective/Rectify – I don’t have anything new to say about TD that hasn’t already been said – disappointing season, Colin Farrell was amazing, and Vince Vaughan was horrific. I broke up with Rectify early on this season – it just got too boring for me. I stuck with it in the first two seasons but I just couldn’t take it anymore. The woman who plays Amantha is cloying and I just couldn’t watch it anymore.

7.Magic Mike XXL – OK not a tv show but I wanted to mention that we saw this on a girls’ night out and it was a lot of fun. I have to say I thought this one was way more outrageous than the first one (see Channing Tatum, drill) and we laughed hysterically. I’m embarassed to say I clapped at the end and my friends laughed at me.

I’m gearing up for Homeland, TWD, The Good Wife, and all the fall shows so until next time, thanks for reading!